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Diversity Course Pre-Assessment

This Multicultural Awareness, Knowledge, and Skills Survey (MAKSS) has been adapted from the original 60-item survey designed by Michael D’Andrea, Judy Daniels, and Ronald Heck, all from the University of Hawaii. Respond to all 29 items on the scale, even if you are not actively working with students or student groups. Base your response on what you think at this time. Try to assess yourself as honestly as possible rather than answering in the way you think would be desirable.

1. Culture is not external, but is within the person.*
2. One of the potential negative consequences about gaining information concerning specific cultures is thatstudents might stereotype members of those cultural groups according to the information they have gained.*
3. At this time in your life, how would you rate yourself in terms of understanding how your cultural background has influenced the way you think and act?*
4. At this point in your life, how would you rate your understanding of the impact of the way you think and act when interacting with persons of different cultural backgrounds?*
5. How would you react to the following statement? While education enshrines the concepts of freedom, rational thought, tolerance of new ideas, and equality, it has frequently become a form of oppression to subjugate large groups of people.*
6. In general, how would you rate your level of awareness regarding different cultural institutions andsystems?*
7. Educational systems, especially higher education, have failed to meet educational needs of ethnic minorities.*
8. At the present time, how would you generally rate yourself in terms of being able to accurately compare your own cultural perspective with that of a person from another culture?*
9. How well do you think you could distinguish “intentional” from “accidental” communication signals in a multicultural interaction??*
10. Ambiguity and stress often result from multicultural situations because people are not sure what to expect from each other.*
11. The criteria of self-awareness, self-fulfillment, and self-discovery are important measures in most education interactions.*
12. Even in multicultural interactions, basic implicit concepts, such as “fairness” and “equity,” are not difficult to understand.*
13. Promoting a student’s sense of psychological independence is usually a safe goal to strive for in most situations.*
14. Educators need to change not only the content of what they think, but also the way they handle this content if they are to accurately account for the complexity in human behavior.*
15. Educational needs vary with the culture of the student.*
16. How would you rate your understanding of the concept of “relativity” in terms of the goals, objectives, and methods of educating culturally different students?*
17. There are some basic teaching skills that are applicable to create successful outcomes regardless of the student’s cultural background.*
22. In general, how would you rate your skill level in terms of being able to provide instruction/service to culturally different students? *
23. How would you rate your ability to effectively consult with another educational professional concerning the EDUCATIONAL needs of a student whose cultural background is significantly different from your own?*
24. How would you rate your ability to effectively consult with another educational professional concerning the SOCIO-EMOTIONAL needs of a student whose cultural background is significantly different from your own?*
25. How would you rate your ability to effectively secure information, research, or resources to better serve culturally different students?*